Being Connected

I would like to discuss something we see every day, but often do not think about: connections. I'm going to talk a bit about ecologies, which, in layman's terms are the relationships between things and their environments. As Christians, many times we don't think about the interconnected and interactive nature of the spiritual ecologies that God has created.

With technology today, we all experience being connected. Whether through social media, email, or text messaging, people feel more connected to the world around them than at any time before. However, many people do not see how interconnected with God’s Word they, and the world, really are. Mary and Stephen Lowe even tell us, “When we study God’s creative masterpiece, we discover we live in a physically interconnected universe." ^[1] Because God created the interconnected universe in which we live, we can reason that His Word gives us ideas about physical and spiritual ecologies He has created.

There are ecologies all around us. There is a notion of the Earth Ecology where both living and non-living things work together to grow and reproduce. ^[2] If there are no connections, then there is no growth and reproduction. There is also the social ecology wherein human beings connect and interact with a defined group of people regularly. ^[3] Our social ecologies help us grow both in physical maturity and also mental maturity as we age. These are just two of many ecologies, but there is something all ecologies need to flourish: growth.

For those who say this is not present in the Bible, I would suggest they have not read it carefully. One merely must have an open mind to see the parallels between the natural ecology of creation and the spiritual ecology of the church.

We can see a simple illustration between these two ecologies in the parables of growth. Peter tells readers, "Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation" (1 Peter 2:2, New Living Translation). In this one verse, Peter compares the physical milk babies need to grow to the spiritual milk new believers need to grow. It is interesting to note that God did not make physical growth and spiritual growth separate laws. One set of laws governs all growth. ^[4]

Another way we see interconnectivity in the Bible is with the Body of Christ imagery. In Ephesians, Paul speaks about each person doing their own part so that when "each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love (Eph. 4:16). Paul also uses this imagery in his letter to the Corinthians. "Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part" (1 Cor. 12:14). He then goes on to say, "How strange a body would be if it had only one part! Yes, there are many parts, but only one body" (1 Cor. 12:19-20). As believers, we are all a part of the Body of Christ. All believers connect to each other through the spiritual body, as each part of a physical body connects. This idea is demonstrated through the local church.

One of the things that is shaking up the local church right now is how to deal with online ministry. The question becomes whether the church can grow and produce spiritual fruit through online means. I have had this conversation with many people since the pandemic hit and forced everyone to rethink how school, work, and church could best reach people. In all honesty, I have no problem with online school and remote work for many, if not most, office jobs. However, I think fully online church needs to be approached with care.

I know moving to an online only way of worship was a big concern for a lot of pastors at the start of the pandemic. Since most of have a traditional idea of what church is, moving to an online delivery could be difficult to grasp and implement successfully. I think this is where communities come into play. If there is a strong foundation within the community it should not matter where or how the community meets. Just because the meetings are online, does not mean they are any less intimate than in person meetings. In my mother’s small group, they used online video for their weekly meeting and talked over the phone and through text and email. While this helped, it was not the same as meeting in person. This small group is a range of people in their mid-forties to their eighties, so this is understandable, but I don’t know if a younger group would mind having most things online and only occasional face to face meetings. In the end, I think it comes down to the individual and the community they are a part of.

Using the Parable of the Seed in Luke 8 is a great example of the creation of community. It is the environment that supports connection and growth. If the environment is fertile and encouraging for learning and spiritual development, then there is no reason why it should not succeed whether online or in person. I think the larger question is what are churches doing with their online ministry. If you look at many churches you will find that their online presence is mainly marketing. Here is the plan for many churches:

• Sunday: Live stream.
• Sunday Afternoon: Pictures from Sunday morning's service
• Monday: Maybe a post with a small sermon clip.
• Wednesday: A post about coming to the Wednesday night service and how great it will be, along with the times.
• Thursday: Maybe some photos of Wednesday night service
• Friday: Usually nothing
• Saturday: A post proclaiming "See you tomorrow!" with the service times

Of course, this is just a normal week. There will be weeks when there are more or less post about events coming up. But notice what is lacking: community. The church is not a building, but the people of God.

Now, please don't get me wrong. I believe all these things are fine, but what we need to do as a church is engage people online. As a church we should be asking how we can use the online space to meet people where they are. We do want them to come to our worship service and become involved in a local congregation, but if all we are doing is advertising, then we have missed the mark. However, to do this correctly requires strategy. Unfortunately, many churches do not understand online tools and how they can be used within the church. While online ministry is beyond the scope of this post, the main point here is that as a church, we should use our online tools as more than a billboard for our church. We need to make connections with people.

One thing we must remember is that there are differences between connections and interactions. I think that in this modern world, many people have conflated these two terms. I think social media has really played a large part in this. While we may have a lot of “connections” with people, we don’t interact with a vast majority of them. This comes up between my wife and me from time to time. She will see someone I went to school with and insist I talk to them. Just because we are connected by attending the same school does not mean we were friends and must interact. Conversely, she acts as if every connection is a friend.

I find it exciting that we are in an age where we can be so connected to each other and to information. However, for any community to work well I firmly believe that, as Stephen and Mary Lowe stated, “There must also be intentionality, reflection, engagement, and interaction between and among those gathered.” ^[5] A group of people is not a community even though they may be connected in some way. I think for a community to exist there must be connections and interactions.

This brings me to my final thought. In many towns and cities across America, each local church exists in its own local bubble or silo. There is usually little to no cooperation with other churches or events put on with the collaboration of several churches. Why is this? I firmly believe much of this has to do with pride. "But Andy, if a pastor from another local church preaches at my church, or if we tell our members about something another church is doing, they might leave." Yes, they might. But now you have hit on the bigger issue: why they would want to leave in the first place? We need to get real. Everyone has access to the best preachers and thologians right now on their phones. I know you can find someone smarter, more articulate, and more charismatic than I am within 2 seconds of searching. The difference between churches is community.

If you are only attending worship service and not a small group, then you will probably stay in a church until the preacher says something you disagree with or you find a "better" preacher somewhere else, either locally or online. You probably also don't worry too much when you miss a Sunday because "nobody knows me." However, if you are involved with a small group of people that you know and that know you and you are faithful, chances are that this group is a large part of why you are at the church. If you are involved and in a small group, a preacher from another church is not going to cause you to leave your current church barring unforseen circumstances. If you miss a Sunday or two your group will check up on you to ask if everything is ok. This is the point of community.

One of my favorite parables Jesus told is the Parable of the Sower found in Luke 8. It is helpful in speaking to many things about Christian life, including community. The seed is the Word of God. It is the environment that supports connection and growth of the seed of a person. If the environment is fertile and encouraging for learning and spiritual development, then there is no reason why it should not succeed whether online or in person.

I know this is just scratching the surface of what it means to be in a community of believers. What I want you to take away from this is that the idea of connections is important. You must not only focus on your connection with Jesus, but also your connection to the people around you. This includes people within your local church body, your friends, family, and also those strangers around you.

If you are a Christian but have not joined a local church or if you are attending a local church but are not involved in a small group, I would highly recommend that you join and connect with others.